Removing paint off an Alu frame

General Help
1

So it seems that everyone I talk to has a different opinion on this so I thought Id throw it up to you guys.

I have a Aluminum frame and forks that is currently a chipped, scratched canary yellow colour.
Im toying with the idea of removing the paint and leaving it raw with an alu-oxide look.

So do I:
Get it blasted?
Get it dipped?
Strip it my self?

And with any of those options does anyone know anywhere in Melbourne that will do a decent job for a reasonable price?

And is there anything I should consider with leaving it raw? Obviously If I get the paint off and it looks hideous underneath, it may be worth painting.

2

Paint stripper from Bunnings will do the job just fine, Kit can vouch for this.

3

My understanding is sand blasting and bead blasting are too aggressive for aluminium. Either acid, paint remover or sanding by hand.

4

i used automotive paint stripper on an old school alu cannondale, worked like a charm. $15 a tub easy, just make sure you have thick gloves and a goggles/mask

5

There’s always walnut shell blasting. WARNING: May contain traces of nuts.

6

On a scale of 1-10 how much of a slut of a job is it to do?

I would have thought that sand blasting be too aggressive for aluminum too! But ive talked to people that think it will be fine? unless someone has first hand knowledge of it im probs gonna agree with you horatio.

Thanks dudes!

7

i think there is some kind of ‘fine’ element you can use to blast it as to not damage, forgot what it was.

As for paint stripper, its not that bad. Trick is to put a generous amount for it work, then you can just scrape it off with a plastic paint scraper of some sort. Do small sections at a time, the first time i was too impatient and covered the whole bike, and slowly scraped off the parts that it worked on it, but then needed to do multiple passes for the bits i missed.

If you just concentrate on small sections, let the pain bubble, then move on to the next, its more manageable and less messy.

Id rate it a solid 6 in the PITA scale. This more due to the mess and health hazard rather then difficulty itself

Oh and dont do it thongs, shit burns your skin if a dollop drops off the frame onto your bare skin

8

Pant stripper? I used paint stripper and a scourer. Raw frames look grand!

9

Spray on paint stripper works better then the jelly shit

10

maybe you’re thinking of soda blasting. there’s also plastic media blasting (ground up plastic beads).
about twice the price, and you definitely can’t DIY as cheaply as a can of stripper.

11

It seems like the stripper is the best/cheapest option.
Ill let yall know how it goes when I get round to it.

Any considerations for the raw frame? I guess once the paints off ill see how good its gonna look. But if anyone had any wisdom to impart regarding finishing it and making it look fairly sexy that would be awesome!